Goducate … Go And Educate! – Page 67 – Helping Asians Help Themselves

2014-09-262014-09-29

Goducate Model Farm recovers from Typhoon Ramassun (Glenda)

Eight months after Typhoon Haiyan (known locally as Typhoon Yolanda) devastated large parts of the Philippines in Nov 2013, Typhoon Rammasun (known locally as Typhoon Glenda) came along. Although its impact was not as great as that of Typhoon Haiyan, Typhoon Rammasun (Rammasun is a Thai word for thunder god) has so far been the strongest to hit Philippines in 2014. Goducate Laguna was badly hit (see blog of July 18, 2014).

Undeterred, our people swung into action immediately to repair the damage. Among the structures damaged were the vermiculture house and the hydroponics house at the Goducate model farm. Two months on, these structures have been restored.

The worms were not destroyed, and in the new vermiculture house, 50 sacks of vermicompost are now being produced per month.

When the hydroponics house was damaged, we lost the 3600 seedlings it contained, some ready to harvest. However, now there are already some ready to harvest in the restored hydroponic house.

As though to signal a new life and a new beginning for every challenge, one of our cows delivered her second kid a few weeks after the typhoon.

Hydroponics house damaged (L) and restored (R)

2014-09-192014-09-26

Happy Happy English introduced in third foreign workers’ dormitory in Singapore

In January this year Goducate started to teach English in a foreign workers’ dormitory in Singapore. The majority of blue-collar foreign workers live in huge dormitories, each housing several thousand workers. These dormitories are generally in isolated areas, away from where the locals live. There are over 40 such dormitories in Singapore.

The program is called Happy Happy English. It is aimed at teaching the workers functional English and giving them the confidence to speak it, but importantly it is also intended to make them feel welcome and happy. They come without their families and generally burdened by huge debts due to the fees they have to pay their agents to find work for them here. Over here, not only do they live in out-of-the-way places, but their long hours of work and low wages also add to giving them little chance of moving about much and getting to know the locals. From the feedback we have received, it is the friendliness they have experienced that they value most about Happy Happy English.

Late last month, Goducate introduced the program into a third dormitory. We began with two stage shows to give them an idea of how fun-filled the classes could be, followed by an orientation class before lessons proper.

We hope that this program will continue to make their lives better and happier.

Group activity during orientation session

2014-09-122014-09-26

Goducate trainees in China finish their training at Goducate Training Center in Iloilo

One of Goducate’s projects in China is to train people to be community development workers. Last month, 9 of these trainees spent the last 2 weeks of their training at the Goducate Training Center (GTC) in Iloilo, Philippines. The idea was to expose them to a foreign country and a foreign culture, and to give them an idea of what it is like to have to adapt to a different environment.

Since if Chinese community workers are sent abroad to serve, it is likely that one of their main tasks will be to teach Chinese as a second language, at GTC, the China team taught the other trainees some Chinese words and songs. They also attended a class teaching how to run an English corner, the principles of which can be applied to the teaching of any language.

Much of the practical training at GTC is done in the neighboring communities. There the China team saw how GTC trainees visit local families to help them help themselves. For example, they showed the families how to raise farm animals, or to increase outputs from their farms.

The China team also visited an area hard hit by Typhoon Haiyan (Yolanda) late last year, and where the Goducate Tent School project has been restoring classrooms in schools badly hit by the typhoon. This restoration work is complemented by various educational activities in the community. The China team visited the schools to teach the children Chinese songs and various kinds of paper crafts. It was good to see how the children were a little reserved at first, but by the time the China team was leaving the kids were joyful and smiling and laughing away.

Although the China team’s introduction to the outside world was very gentle, in that the GTC is set in beautiful surroundings and the team was surrounded by kind-hearted people and pampered by good food and wonderful service, the servant’s hearts they saw in the others became a lesson in themselves.

Teaching Chinese in classroom undamaged by Typhoon Haiyan

*Our guest writer is Brenda, a China team trainer and program coordinator